Arkadia
When a rare ore was discovered on the western slops of Capotia some 30 years ago, the boom town of Arkadia exploded to life. Vast technological wonders flowed out of this city, most notably the Rail. Gunslingers hail from the dusty desert town, along with alchemists, wizards, and any other sort that find the tinkering craft to suite them. History What's Better Than Gold In Them There Hills The badlands west of Valencia were inhabited by the occasional nomad for centuries up until about 50 years ago. A westerner by the name of Clark Dekrim traveled out to these lands in search of a new life. After some 20 odd years of searching, he stumbled upon a rich vein of Valencian Iron ore. Unlike the bloom steel used from the sands of Valencia, this ore could be smelted into much stronger stuff, which made it all the more valuable. Clark sent back word of his discovery to nearby INSERT KINGDOM 11 NAME HERE, and within a few months a lively boom town had cropped up. Manifest Destiny It didn't take long for word to spread of Dekrim's discovery. Tinkers and artisans across the land came to purchase, mine, or steal this metal for use in their projects. Things worked out for the folks that lived and traded there though. The increase in population lead to a surging need for all sorts of work. For quite a few though, this time of prosperity wouldn't last long. Two years after the founding of Arkadia an army marched on the city. The naturally defensible position against the mountains, and the advanced cogsteel weaponry Arkadia was famous for, held off the army for a time. But for as much as Arkadia could defend itself in the hills, they couldn't survive a protracted siege. The city relied on neighboring INSERT KINGDOM 11 NAME HERE for food and clothes, as well as fuel for their steam engines. With an army encircling the area, Arkadia's food was running dry. Just as the leaders of Arkadia were about to surrender their city to avoid any more death and destruction, the thunderous trumpets were heard from the other side of the mountains. An army of valencians marched through the pass to the south with a traditional cavalry of elephants. The arkadians feared a second army was at their doorstep to take their land, but were all too surprised to see the valencians crashing through the western army and set up a defensive position before sending diplomats to the town hall. The valencians had a proposal for Arkadia: an alliance. Valencia would offer their protection and war elephants; Arkadia would guard the mountain pass to protect the one vulnerability in the Capotia wall. Arkadia happily obliged, arming the valencians with firearms, cannons, and clockwork armors. The tide of the battle turned sharply, and the western army fled. To this day, a cogsteel statue of a valencian war elephant with a (working) cannon on its back stands in the center of town, reminding all of the alliance that saved Arkadia. The Rail In spite of the threat that the west once presented itself to Arkadia, the steamwrights of the city knew that trade was all too important to the livelihood of their town. That, and few an arkadian was ever known for their caution. So they performed one of greatest works of inter-kingdom civics since the days of the Thruhmuth empire. Over the course of a decade blacksmiths, artisans, and steamwrights from all over the world worked to create a rail line from Arkadia to the western coast. The dangers of the land, and the vast expense of the ordeal limited the Rail to a single line that went east to west, but even this much managed to connect the people of the world in a way only dreamed of previously. The Death The plague that swept through the world hit Arkadia just as hard as any other place. Many from the west believe that the disease came from Valencia and spread across the Rail. One popular opinion is that Arkadia is to blame for the widespread devastation of the plague; people would've never made it much past the Capotia mountains had that damned rail not been in place. Of course, the people of Arkadia hold somewhat different views. Some believe that indeed the Rail was a mistake; that the plague came from the west and would've died in the west had it not been for that easy transportation. Others believe that there was been no stopping the plague, and that it was Aal's will that so many be tested. Whatever the case for the plague, the survivors of Arkadia know themselves to be of a tough, ingenuitive stock. Those that are left share a strong sense of need to use their talents and resources to fix up what's left of the world. Geography Arkadia is situated at the base of the Capotia mountains, just a few miles north of the Argos pass. Hundreds of independent mines dot the mountains in the region, all shipping their ores to smiths in Arkadia. Bleak sun-dried rocks surround stretch on for miles with the occasional scrub-grass and cactus showing that life can always find a way. Rains rarely make it this far east, but when they do the mines are shut down for weeks on end to avoid flooding. Arkadia itself is a misshapen circular town. The history of the town can be read like a tree. The inner most circle of the city is made up of stone and clay buildings. Simple mud huts to keep a soul out of the sun and warm at night or artificial caves dug into the cliff side blanket the landscape. Of course, with the city's growth these structures have been augmented and built up, but most land owners feel a sense of nostalgia, keeping the simple clay architecture abundant. Outside of this central residential area is a wide ring of steel structures. After enough iron was pulled from the mines, people grew tired of the simple mud and clay houses. Spires started to form of cogsteel. The strength of the material and it's ability to hold magic made for excellent houses and walkways that stayed lit from just a spot of magic. The city's irregular shape started with this period, as the mountains made it difficult to build concentric rings like in many old city designs. This of course did not stop the Arkadians, who drilled holes into the cliff side and built up great steel structures like a spider's web across the mountain's face. A great wall was built of cogsteel to keep out the invading westerners. A great number of homes were stripped down to be reforged into weapons or defenses in the lead up to the war. Out of fear of future conflict, few people after the war built their homes or businesses out of cogsteel, instead using fine palm wood sent from Aal's Brush. This makes the third and fourth rings of Arkadia. In the time after the war, buildings that had been left as cogsteel skeletons were built back up using the fine timber. A crescent cuts between what some call new and old Arkadia (but with a town little more than 30 years old, how anyone can think of any of it being old is anyone's guess) is distinct in its dense wood and steel architecture. The edge of Arkadia blends into the badlands surrounding it with wooden structures. This region of the city spreads its legs out. Buildings are given a good bit of space between them instead of being built on top of older infrastructure. The sand blows into the streets which are hardly more than dirt paths. Sidewalks of fine timber circle most every building. Out here the strength of Arkadia's central government is quite weak, so saloons, gambling dens, and brothels are abundant, with the sheriff and few deputies turning a blind eye to most 'harmless' crime. Outside of Arkadia, the city-state's influence keeps other kingdoms out. There's the occasional dirt town that's cropped up around a watering hole or well. Most famous of these is the Doogal Gang. Named after a gang of thieves and bandits who had a hide out in the hills of the Capotia, the small hamlet sits halfway in a cave system with a natural spring. Cauldron of Ancients Located somewhere in the Capotia Mountains lies a vast system of automated machinery, foundries, and bizarre advanced technologies. From this place hail groups of artificial beings, known as Androids by the inhabitants of settlements who encounter them. When asked about the innermost workings of the facility, these beings have no memory of the inside and simply call it the “Cauldron of Ancients.” The exact location of the Cauldron has yet to be discovered. Androids attempting to guide adventurers to the facility often find the location of their release to be nothing more than a blank stone wall, where a massive metal door had been. As a result of this phenomena, there is no record of what the inside actually contains. However, there is some intelligence driving the entire operation. On very rare occasions, a fearsome beast of alloy and polymer will emerge from the depths of the Cauldron. The mechanical creature will attempt to locate and reclaim the Androids that have been released. It is unknown why this happens, but it is suspected that the Cauldron retains some connection to the Androids, and the beasts are sent to gather the information collected by them. The Cauldron is not the only source of these Androids. Veins of ore deep within the mines of the boomtown Arkadia sometimes veil strange life-support pods containing members of the species. These particular Androids often have more than a few out-of-the-ordinary quirks or abilities. Even for the extraordinary species itself. Government Arkadia is technically ruled by Valencia. The vast distance between the crown of Valencia and the boom town is so great though that Arkadia is left to it's own devices. Every so often a mayor is appointed by Valencia with the input of the Arkadian people. But this position is more or less for show and ceremony. The steamwrights of Arkadia, and the wealthy mine owners who finance them, usually take their own direction without much the mayor can do. The mayor however does appoint a sheriff regularly, who then appoints deputies to enforce the law. To most arkadians, this sheriff is the defacto leader of the land. Within the cogsteel walls of the inner city the sheriff is well loved for 'keeping the ruffians out' but to those 'ruffians' outside the wall, law men aren't held in high regard. The outskirts of the city are divided into different districts and run by gangs of outlaws who made their money stealing shipments of valencian steel from the mountains. Economy Arkadia has grown rich from the valencian iron pulled from the mountains. Although some of this wealth comes from directly trading the ore itself, or the cogsteel smelted, few know how to work the metal as well as an arkadian steamwright. Fantastical devices are forged from this steel due to its unique property to conduct magic. Not only are traditional rods or other trinkets created from this metal, a new category of magical wear has developed: magitech. Arkadia exports a vast amount of vehicles, weapons, and other devices, but even still the heart of Arkadia is full of flying, crawling, and rolling devices of wonder. The Rail Of the various steel carriages created in Arkadia, none is more famous than the legendary locomotive. After the war, arkadian steamwrights made deals and alliances with many other kingdoms to lay down steel roads across the continent. These simple rails allow a fleet of massive boilers on wheels to travel across the land at about the speed of a horse without any of that pesky need for rest. After the construction of the Rail, the continent's trade and diplomacy boomed. The Rail is not without its downsides though. Generally only the wealthy can afford to send themselves across the continent on the fancy trains. So generally, every car on the tracks are full of valuables to rob. A thriving community of outlaws and paid guards fight over the Rail across the continent, but none more famous than the gangs of Arkadia. The iron that makes up the tracks isn't even safe from looters. Occasionally a train will be stopped in its tracks literally as chunks of rail are stolen and must be repaired. Currently a wealthy explorer by the name of Rutherford seeks to expand the Rail into the east, across the desert into Valencia. Many valencians believe this to be a mistake, removing the struggles of the journey and thus cheapening the experience. The desert itself presents quite a few problems for Rutherford's ambitions. Sinkholes, giant sandworms, long stretches where a breakdown would kill everyone on board, and other dangers stand in the way of the experienced entrepreneur's vision. Religion After Valencia came to Arkadia's aid about 30 years ago the people of the city have adopted much valencian culture. No small part of this being the worship of Aal. Of course, traditional Aal clergy would find arkadian aalites to be heretics. The first and foremost reason for this belief is that, the desert of Aal ends on the other side of the mountain, keeping its struggles and treasures well outside of Arkadia's reach. This does not stop arkadians from earnestly believing that they follow Aal's way. They toil in the mines or in the forge, and for their struggles, they receive fantastic treasures. In spite of the safety and security of the Rail for travel, robbers and the bomb-like structure of the engines leave no small amount of danger to the trip. Culture Arkadia is a massive mishmash of many different cultures that has evolved into its own unique setting. Most arkadians are 1st or 2nd generation immigrants from the west, bringing with them architecture from INSERT KINGDOM 8, INSERT KINGDOM 9, and INSERT KINGDOM 11. Following the alliance with Valencia though, many aspects of the desert kingdom's culture were appropriated. Worship of Aal became common, and artists began imitating the famous designs of Aal's brush. The outskirts of Arkadia have taken on a rugged culture of its own. Most folk have an independent streak in them that makes them buck from normal law and order handed down from the center of the city. They seek to strike it on their own and live their own life. Inhabitants Aasimar Aasimar are about as common here as anywhere else in the world. Due to the desert climate, emberkin are more common than any other of the celestial-touched. Android Androids call Arkadia home. Forged in an ancient factory in the hills, every year a new crop of androids wanders into the city looking for purpose. Clockwork Merchants Built as bodyguards and as a means of trading with Valencia, clockwork merchants were developed shortly after the founding of Arkadia. The wizard who figured out how to make the automatons has since died, and with them their secrets. But each clockwork merchant has an intuitive understanding of their own construction, and as such have inexplicably created many generations of new clockwork merchant in spite of the construction rituals being beyond the ken of others. Dwarf Dwarves are quite common in Arkadia, often enough found in the mines. Around half of the different mines are owned by dwarven families. Elf Once cogsteel was discovered, elven wizards flocked to the area to experiment with the new material. The steamwright guild is made up of mostly humans, gnomes, and elves, who are all vying for control of the guild. Gearforged Originating here in Arkadia, gearforged were created during the war to give mobility and autonomy to those too injured in the fighting a chance at a second life. Gnoll One of the original inhabitants of the region, gnolls are relatively uncommon in the city. Most stayed away from the city as it grew, but quite a few gnoll gangs have formed, taking what they want from the outskirts of Arkadia. Gnome The gnome tinkerers of Arkadia are a famous lot. The development of the Rail came from a gnome inventor who helped found the steamwright guild. For this reason many gnomes claim a right to rule the steamwright guild. Goblin After the alliance with Valencia, many goblins fled from Aal's Brush to make a life in Arkadia. Arkadia doesn't concern itself with physical beauty like Aal's Brush, and so goblins and their inventive madness were welcomed right in. Half-Elf Due to the common elf and human population, half-elves are a frequent occurrence. Because of their propensity for diplomatic skills, an above average number of deputies and sheriffs have been half-elves. Halfling Halflings often time find the adventure of wild Arkadia to be an exciting prospect. Abandoned mines and unexplored caves litter the mountains, drawing many a halfling and their adventuring allies into their dark depths. Half-Orc Like the goblins of Aal's Brush, many half-orcs have traveled to Arkadia in search of a more accepting life. Their dreams are only half met though, often being pushed into work in the mines due to the stereotypes of orcish strength. Human One of the most common races in Arkadia, humans migrate to the city for the same reason as anyone else: cogsteel and the many wonders it can create. Currently a faction of humans are vying for control of the steamwright guild. Ifrit Due to the proximity to the desert, ifrit are more common in Arkadia than in most other regions in the world save for Valencia. Their inner fire lends itself well to the cogsteel forges. Kobold Another one of the inhabitants of the region, kobolds have lived in the mountains for generations. When Arkadia sprung up, quite a few kobold gangs rose up to meet it, robbing and looting what they could from this new source of wealth and power. Lizardfolk The Eclipse tribe of lizardfolk often raid the mines of Arkadia. On rare occasion though, whether expelled from their tribe or just inspired to live differently, a lizardfolk will leave the mountains and join the city proper. Orc Hailing from the INSERT KINGDOM 11 NAME HERE, orcs are an uncommon sight in Arkadia. Like their half-orc cousins, they are pressured into work in the mines. Oread Oread are just about as common as ifrit in the area, but this comes in part due to the fame of the various mines that fuel Arkadia's cogsteel industry. Quicksilver Kin Just as it's unknown where quicksilver kin come from, it's unknown why there's a higher population of them in Arkadia than in the rest of the world. Some believe that somehow the valencian iron ore has somehow seeped into the blood of quicksilver kin, giving them their odd metalic physiology. Ratfolk Natives to the region, ratfolk often pass through but don't live directly in Arkadia. The appeal of cogsteel treasures is more than enough to draw in most any ratfolk, leading to a recent custom among ratfolk to make journeys to the city. Suli Suli are common enough in Arkadia, often hailing from Valencia or children of valencians who migrated to the city. Between the fire of the desert and the riches of the mountains, suli of Arkadia tend to favor fire and earth over air and water. Sylph Sylph, like other planetouched, crop of from time to time in Arkadia. They are not nearly as common as their ifrit or oread cousins though. Tiefling Tiefling occasionally appear in Arkadia. When they do, they are treated poorly much like other regions. This leads them to often align with one of the various gangs that dominate the outskirts of Arkadia. Undine Undine, like other planetouched, crop of from time to time in Arkadia. They are not nearly as common as their ifrit or oread cousins though. Wyvaran Like their kobold relatives, wyvaran are native to the mountains in the region. There's famously a gang of wyvarans who direct a full troop of kobold kin, all at the directive of their wyvren mother. Threats Arkadia is no stranger to trouble. Although they don't face the fear of war anymore, conflict is ever present. Mountain Folk The eclipse liardfolk of the mountains are an ever present threat to the mines of Arkadia. Their deadly understanding of the region makes them a formidable threat whenever they seek to raid the mines for its precious metal. (CR 3-7 average) Wyverns take roost in the Capotia mountains and aren't afraid to fly into the outskirts of the city for a quick snack. Occasionally they will somehow intermingle with kobolds to create wyvarans. When these wyvarans are found riding their siblings into battle, most any arkadian will drop anything of value and hope it's enough to keep the pair from chasing. (CR 6-10) Rumors persist of a giant cogsteel rhinoceros in the mountains that will occasionally attack a shipment of valencian iron ore. Reports of this beast describe a creation beyond the ken of even the best steamwrights. Which makes many people believe that this construct hails from a time long past. (CR 11) Local Gangs The Kharvin Gang makes the disorganized raiding of other wyverns and wyvarans look like child's play. Headed by their matriarch, Ma Kharvin, the gang consists of her 3 wyvaran sons, Crac, Dreec, and Snoc, as well as countless other kobold. They often hold up the train as it crosses the badlands on its way in or out of Arkadia riding desert drakes. (CR 8-12) The Crypt Walker Gang is a group of undead that stalk the outskirts of Arkadia. Unlike most other gangs, the Crypt Walker Gang actively kills its victims, rather than just taking their goods. Mostly comprised of ghouls, the gang is headed by a ghul who died in the region long ago but was awoken when the first mines opened. (CR 3-7) The Dog Rider Gang is somehow one of the most incompetent gangs that controls some of the outskirts yet at the same time one of the hardest to clear out of the area. Aptly named for their propensity to attack with riding dogs or worgs, this gang comprised mostly of halflings, goblins, and gnomes who regularly attempt convoluted or downright stupid heists. (CR 1-5)